Mr Pannell was dancing at the venue in Woodford Green, Essex, at about 2am when Miss Bhatia set upon him, Matthew Dalton, prosecuting, said.

She walked up to him before pushing a glass of vodka and orange juice into his face, the court was told.

Mr Pannell said: “The glass struck me and then also the drink itself. I went down on one knee. As I touched my face, I could see blood and my friends immediately came to aid me.

"I got up, went to the Portaloo to check my eye and realised I needed more serious attention. So I got in a taxi and went to Whipps Cross hospital.”

Mr Pannell had arrived at the garden party, thrown by Lauren and Ben Hale, his classmates at Walthamstow’s Forest School, at about 9pm.

He said Miss Bhatia, whom he knew as “Millie”, had been “looking over” at him often during the evening.

“It was a free bar and there were waitresses going around with champagne,” he told the court. “I did notice that if we happened to glance it wasn’t exactly a pleasant look on her face.”

Miss Greensmith’s friends were upset when their six-month relationship ended, he said, especially when he began a relationship with another girl the following week.

Miss Bhatia was arrested at her home in Woodford on Sept 20 and told police the incident had been an accident.

“When she was interviewed, she began by reading out a text message she had sent to Christian Pannell,” said Mr Dalton.

“It said, 'I want to apologise about what happened last night. It was a horrible accident. I meant to flick your drink on you as a joke, but I think my ring may have hit your glass, which made it shatter’.”

Miss Bhatia denies assault causing actual bodily harm.

Icah Peart, defending, accused Mr Pannell and his father of trying to cash in on Miss Syal’s fame.

Mr Pannell, a male model, had claimed he was left with a scar that may have affected his earnings.

Mr Peart said: “You knew full well that this was an accident, but you changed your story because you thought you could make some money out of it.”

He showed the court a letter Mr Pannell’s solicitors sent to Miss Bhatia, allegedly asking for compensation and threatening her family with negative publicity.

Mr Pannell denied he was trying to make money, adding that he was only interested in “justice”.

But he admitted his father had “aggressively” pursued the legal action. He added: “I felt I didn’t want her to go to prison and she had already suffered quite a bit from the situation.”